Meet Sasha

Hi there! I am so glad you are here. I am a mom to 4 amazing kids, wife to the love of my life better known to me as HSG, & a cardiac anesthesiologist. I am a lipstick & shoe addict, extrovert, & writer. My favorite days: watching my kids play sports, helping very sick people & speaking across the country to women. (Did I mention my love of Jimmy Choos?)

I founded Brave Enough because after a successful career climb as a clinical scientist and national expert, I found myself empty & isolated. So…I started a tribe. My greatest passion is empowering & encouraging women to be #braveenough in their professional & personal lives. I believe leadership & lipstick are not mutually exclusive; & women need each other. I have inspired thousands of women to believe the same & lead the best tribe ever!

While I have published over 40 peer-reviewed articles including ones in JAMA & the NEJM, and I am a TedX Speaker…my greatest joy is equipping women to live & lead authentically through my Master Class, retreats & conferences. I hope you find one thing here: you belong.

You can find my writing routinely featured on KevinMD, Doximity, Physician's Weekly, InCrowd and DocCheck & My podcast on iTunes!

Meet the BE Team

Lance is the Chief Operating Officer of Brave Enough LLC, father of four, husband of Sasha, Christ follower and a Physical Therapist. Lance is a graduate of Southwest Baptist University with a bachelors degree in Biology and a Masters of Physical Therapy. Originally from Kansas City Missouri, Lance has lived in Nebraska since 1999. When not practicing physical therapy or working at Brave Enough he enjoys Crossfit, spending time watching his 3 boys play soccer and basketball and his daughter dance. He loves to travel with Sasha and is a foodie.

Jayme Small is the Program Coordinator for Brave Enough LLC. She is an 8th grade language arts teacher who has been seeking to encourage and motivate her students for the past 20 years. She was a middle school education major and received her masters in curriculum and instruction. When she is not in the classroom, you will most likely find her cheering in the stands at one of her teenagers sporting events. She is thrilled to be a part of the Brave Enough team and is inspired by its mission!

Testimonials

Sasha Shillcutt has been inspiring to me in so many ways. As a physician educator, she is strong, well respected and hard working. As a wife and mother, she is balanced, kind hearted and giving. She inspires me to work on my authentic self and encourages me to seek my own personal balance. Despite being busy in her career and family life, she serves as someone who will encourage and uplift other women around her! Her life and blog help me work on my inner shine! 

In 2015, Sasha started a networking group on Facebook for women physicians. The group, called Style MD, quickly grew from 30 members to nearly 8,000 attending women physicians from all over the world. The purpose of Style MD is to empower physician women through encouragement and networking. The group promotes resilience through self-care, networking, promotion and sponsorship. Below are testimonials from women in Style MD:

Before Style MD, I was too afraid to promote myself, to realize my value and my ability to contribute. After joining this amazing group of women, I am a better physician, mother and wife. I have given my first talk at a national meeting, have been asked to review articles for peer journals and have been invited to do research with leaders in my field. All I did was speak up and put myself out there, and believed in myself.

— Suzy Feigofsky, M.D., FHRS Cardiac Electrophysiology

Before SMD I wasn’t really sure if it was even okay to care about one’s appearance. Superficially this may not seem like a big deal but I heard the message loud and clear early in my training when someone mocked the completely appropriate but colorful dress I chose to wear. Who I was and the things that brought joy to me were dumb. This made me question a multitude of things in my life and shook my confidence. I felt like I had to deny myself, shroud myself in non-distracting clothing in hopes of appearing more competent. Stumbling upon this group opened my eyes to realizing that it is perfectly fine to be who I am meant to be. I’m someone who has a passion for my work, passion in helping others, and I also happen to love shopping and dressing up. Essentially I learned not to deny who I was and in doing so have gained confidence to take my career and family life to greater heights.

— Isabelle C., M.D. Physician

I had joined Style MD in 2016 when I was in bit of a routine in my previous job. Though I was happy at my old job, I did not feel there was any room for personal growth. Being in Style MD, I was surrounded by women who were not only physicians by profession but also just good people. The kind of people, who want to see you happy and encourage you to do things you never thought you could. The mantra of being #braveenough, came from the constant reminder, that it takes a lot of courage to do something difficult. Of course there is the style aspect of the group, which makes it fun. Looking great makes you feel great and is a reflection of you as a person. In my new job, I treat women with pelvic pain, and I transmit that mantra of ‘being brave’ to my patients, because mind and body are connected.